


The Authentic Life Chapter 7

by ssa_archivist



Category: Smallville
Genre: Alternate Universe, Drama, Established Relationship, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2006-10-13
Updated: 2006-10-13
Packaged: 2017-11-01 06:56:38
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,350
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/353423
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ssa_archivist/pseuds/ssa_archivist
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Jonathan and Martha are shocked to discover that Clark and Lex are more than just legendary friends, and Clark's summer in Metropolis is far from gone and forgotten.<br/></p>
            </blockquote>





	The Authentic Life Chapter 7

## The Authentic Life Chapter 7

by Coren Lee

[]()

* * *

The Authentic Life  
By Coren Lee 

Chapter 7 

Jonathan closed his eyes, and wished himself almost anywhere but listening to this conversation. Lex had all but admitted that he had no boundaries where Clark was concerned, and Clark was clearly just as obsessed with the Luthor boy. God help anyone who ever threatens either of them, he thought, and then caught his breath as he followed that idea through to its logical conclusion. 

Jonathan looked up to see a pair of slate blue eyes regarding him rather coolly, face as impassive and unreadable as ever. It was a complete mystery to him how Clark could ever have become entangled with this strange, disturbing, man. Perhaps more astonishing though was that Clark had apparently captured Lex's heart and soul. Of course Clark had always been able to wrap him and Martha around his little finger but to get underneath the defences of the Luthor heir, well, Jonathan really had no idea how that had happened. But there was no point avoiding the inevitable. He may not be enjoying the conversation, but he wanted all the answers, not just the palatable ones. He cleared his throat. 

"What happened with the ship, son? When you blew it up?" 

He saw a brief spasm of pain flicker across Clark's face. "Pretty much what I've already told you, except I didn't mention before that it was Lex who stole the Kryptonite key from Lionel. I put it into the ship hoping it would destroy it, but I had no idea the explosion would be so severe, nor that I would be unconscious for so long. By the time I came round, the wedding was over and the plane had left the hangar. I kept trying to call Lex on his cell but I couldn't get a signal. I was nearly out of my mind in worry by this time." 

Jonathan watched the emotions flickering across his son's face; pain, fear, anguish, one after the other. Clark visibly collected himself, and almost like a shroud falling over him, the mask slipped back into place. Jonathan had never really understood until that moment that the face Clark usually presented to the world, even to his parents, was a fake, a sham facade that he hid behind. It was disconcerting to realise how little he really knew about his alien son. 

"I headed back to the farm, and that was when I discovered you and Mom in the truck. I called 911, and followed the ambulance to the hospital. Then, while I was waiting in the hallway, I heard the news that Lex's plane had gone down. I couldn't think straight, all I wanted to do was make sure that Lex was safe. I tried to find out where the plane went down, but no-one seemed to know anything. The pilot hadn't lodged a flight plan, and no-one knew where the wreckage was. I just snapped. It was like I fractured into pieces." 

"I thought you ran away because you were upset about the baby," whispered Martha. 

"I was upset about the baby Mom, truly, but Dad didn't want me in the room with you guys, and Lex was missing. Lex was missing, do you get what that did to me? I was in such pain, I had to do something. I remember thinking that I could destroy Smallville, that it might make me feel better, but you know why I didn't? I couldn't be bothered. Lex was gone, so nothing else mattered. Why go to the trouble of destroying Smallville when Lex wasn't there with me?" 

"God Clark, we had no idea!" Martha sounded as horrified as Jonathan was feeling. All this time he'd thought that he'd driven Clark away, or that Clark felt guilty about causing the accident that killed the baby. It was a shock to learn that Clark was devastated because Lex was missing, not just because of their pain at losing the baby. 

"Without Lex I just lost it, I didn't care about anything. I blamed myself that you lost the baby, and I thought you would be relieved to see the back of me. I knew that I couldn't tell you why losing Lex on top of everything else just tipped me over the edge. Getting high on red Kryptonite was, strangely enough, what saved me and kept me sane; well, relatively sane anyway. It gave me enough freedom from my pain that I could function within certain defined parameters. Outside of those parameters though - well, let's just say that I caused a lot of damage to people who tried to force me to do something I really didn't want to do--" 

"Like Lana and Chloe?" 

"No, not like Lana and Chloe, Mom. They walked away unscathed from our encounters; maybe a little upset, but I didn't hurt them physically." 

"Clark, Chloe showed me the bruises where you grabbed her." 

"Mom, trust me, compared to what I did to other people, a few bruises don't even count. I had to get rid of her before I did something I might regret, and you know Chloe, she wouldn't take no for an answer. So, I grabbed her and pushed her outside. She had no right following me home in the first place." 

"She was worried about you son, we all were." 

Clark just shrugged. 

"Do we even want to know what you did to other people?" Jonathan really didn't want to ask that question, but he'd decided earlier that he wanted the whole truth, no matter how unpalatable it might be. 

"No, I don't think you do," said Clark. "It's not something you want to hear, and it's not something I particularly want to talk about." 

"Clark did what he had to do to keep himself safe, Mr Kent. Let it go at that, please." 

Jonathan had wondered how long it would be before Lex intervened; seeing them together, as a couple, it was obvious that they both had a strong protective urge for each other. As soon as one of them became disturbed, the other stepped in. It made for a formidable partnership, but Jonathan couldn't help being concerned that humankind wasn't yet ready for such an alliance; in fact might never be ready for such an alliance. Individually either one of them could possibly rule the world, but together nothing would be able to stand against them. 

"Alright, I will," agreed Jonathan, "but while we're wading knee deep in sensitive subjects, let me ask about Helen. Where is she? You said she parachuted from the plane, so you have to have located her to know that." 

"She can't hurt either of you, can she?" added Martha. 

"No Mom, she can't hurt either of us. She won't hurt anyone ever again, trust me on that." 

Jonathan felt a shiver run up his spine at the ice in his son's voice. Much as he wanted full disclosure on the events of the summer, his gut was screaming at him to let it drop. The implication of Clark's reassurance was glaringly obvious, and he wasn't sure if he could hear the truth and not turn from his son in horror. 

He saw Lex watching him, mask in place, giving nothing away, but a flicker in those cool slate eyes revealed hidden emotion if you were looking for it. Jonathan suddenly realized that this was one of those pivotal moments that occur from time to time. Like when they found toddler Clark after the meteor shower, or when he came back to them at the end of the summer. How he reacted now would have a lasting and significant effect on all their lives. If he wanted to protect his son, keep him safe, then he had to let it go. If he pushed now, then it would all be over. He didn't know how he knew that with such conviction, simply that it was so. It wasn't so much a decision to be made as a certainty to be acknowledged and accepted. 

(Continues in Chapter 8) 


End file.
